1. A huge crowd may cheer for Android, thinking what is the fuss about iOS?
2. The people cheering for iOS not caring about another OS 

This is not to say that iOS is better (let’s not start a war!!). 

In fact, Apple has been popularly restrictive while approving apps. Its stringent policies require all apps to be top-notch before they make it to Appstore. And here’s the interesting part – developers still prefer developing iOS apps for the OS’ popularity and higher earning potential.

As per StatCounter data, of all the mobile devices connected to the internet, 27% are connected via iOS devices. And as per Apple’s data release earlier this year, over 2.22 million iOS apps are available on the Appstore.

The above image shows the total number of apps that are available in leading app stores as of 1st quarter 2021.

But to get past Apple’s scary approval guidelines, iOS app developers must maintain the quality threshold set for iOS apps. Selecting the right coding language for apps can make this an easy sail for you.

And for that, there are bottomless factors to consider: an optimum talent pool, ease of learning and development, cross-platform support, scalability, cost of development, and so on.

Let’s have a look at our options for programming languages.

1. Swift

No matter how new you are to the world of iOS App Development language, there are very high chances that your response to the question that we are answering is Swift. It is one of the most preferred languages to shape the future of iOS app development. 

Released in 2014, Swift has become one of the most popular coding apps for iPhone programming languages. According to Tiobe index for Swift in 2020, Swift was ranked as the 11th most popular language with almost 3x as many votes as the year before.

Swift is a general-purpose programming language used to develop superior-quality native apps specifically for iOS. It is designed to work well with frameworks like Cocoa Touch and Cocoa.

Its biggest pros are scalability, interoperability (especially with objective-C), open-source, and fast development. Swift app development also provides data security in development and has ARC (Automatic memory arc). 

The most significant disadvantage of this coding language is its limited user base.

When to use it?

If you want to carry out swift app development and scale the app quickly, Swift is your best bet. It can be used as a language app for iPhone app programming language, iPad, Apple Watch, Apple TV and Mac. 

2. Objective-C

The predecessor of Swift, this app programming language was built as an extension of the object-oriented programming language C, with similar properties. Developed in 1984, it is now a general-purpose programming language still compatible with Mac OS and iOS and was the primary iOS coding language before Swift came around. 

There has always been a comparison between Objective C and Swift in terms of readability, coding, execution time, code maintenance and so on.

However, it carries several cons that make it a bit outdated as an iOS development language in 2021.

Its unavailability as an open-source language makes it difficult to learn. Plus, the security issues, limited functionality, and lack of updates also weigh down its popularity. 

On the other hand, it is often seen as a stable and mature language.

When to use it? 

You can use Objective-C as an iOS programming language only when you want to develop or update apps for the older iOS versions that Swift does not support.

3. Flutter

A popular coding language for apps, Flutter was developed by Google in the year 2015 and launched in 2017 officially. It is a highly versatile open-source development kit and can be used to create apps for iOS, Android, Mac, Linux, Windows, and Google Fuchsia.

Flutter allows the developers to create aesthetically attractive and intuitive cross-platform apps, that is why it is considered by both android and iOS developers. But, of course, this also comes with its set of pros and cons. Some of which is that it is highly cost and time-efficient, provides full customisation capability, has its widgets and is available as an open-source language; at the same time, it still has a limited and young talent pool.

When to use it?

Being the most popular cross-platform app development language, it is best to use Flutter when you want to create an iOS app and make the Android, desktop and Web app versions for it. It can save a lot of time since you can make use of the iOS app programming language to create app versions for all compatible OS’ and platforms using a single codebase. 

4. C#

Created as Microsoft’s response to Java language, C#, is a high-level, general-purpose, object-oriented programming language. In fact, it can be said to be one of the most coveted programming languages and stands similar to Microsoft app development, as Objective-C is for Apple. 

Furthermore, according to a survey conducted by StackOverflow, C# is considered one of the most versatile coding languages worldwide and is ranked 5th in the Tiobe August 2021 index.

In terms of its pros, C# is an open-source language and makes iOS mobile app development relatively easier for intermediate to advanced level developers. Moreover, it has a vast talent pool, supports cross-platform app development, offers a rich library, and provides better cost-benefit and integration than other coding languages. However, it does have a few downsides as well like, it consists of a poor platform GUI and can be considered as difficult to learn for beginners. 

When to use it?

It can be mainly used when your team has experienced C# developers and when you wish to develop Android, Windows, and Web API versions of the iOS app. 

5. HTML5

As an iOS app development language, app developers used it in combination with JavaScript and CSS. In fact, as per the W3techs, HTML5 is used by almost 88.5% of all the websites.

Though not as preferred as native apps, hybrid apps still provide excellent browser control and use the combination (HTML5 with CSS) for rendering pages. 

Its pros include multi-platform support, excellent cost-effectiveness, consistency across many browsers, offline browsing, and it even enables a good page ranking. However, there are a few cons, like it only works for hybrid app development, has limited functionality, and can cause problems with design responsiveness. 

When to use it?

This is the best choice when you do not want to invest too much time and resources in developing an iOS app and have a simple app design that can be accessed offline. For high-quality and functionality iPhone apps, though, it might not be the right choice.

The Verdict

The best Programming language for iOS in 2021 turns out to be Swift, all factors considered. 

Why Swift?

As we began this article talking about the superior loyalty of iOS users, Swift is one coding language that fits the bills of creating a loyalty-worthy application perfectly. 

The reason why businesses choose Swift is because of Its intuitiveness and consciousness in creating native apps are among the most significant positive factors that work in its favour. Furthermore, Swift was explicitly developed to be faster than the earlier available language – Objective-C. Even on the security front, it is one of the better options. And the fact of the matter is that the only downside Swift has currently is the relatively small talent pool compared to the older coding languages. 

Closing Words

According to a survey conducted by StackOverflow, various iOS languages can be ranked above Swift for their wide range of advantages. However, that also depends on your priorities. For a quick hybrid app, it might be HTML5, and for a multiple-platform development that includes Microsoft, it might be C#. 

However, as far as Apple and Apple products go, Swift leads the chart. Thus, if you need any help regarding your iphone app development services, then plz choose an iphone application development company like appinventiv to help you in your project.

The post Which Language Is Best For iOS App Development? appeared first on Appinventiv.

In case you missed out on the features that the new iOS 14 updates comes with, head on to our article – How to prepare your app for iOS 14.

However, we can presume that by this time you must have gotten acquainted with the key aspects of iOS 14 privacy features. But do you know that the update will carry an impact on the process of how your partnered iPhone app development company handles your app development and distribution?

Let us talk about it in detail in this article today. 

The List of Privacy-Centric iOS 14 Updates

The biggest announcement that Apple has made in terms of the iOS update that will be made next year is giving users the option to clock IDFA identifier at the application level. A move that strengthens the tech giant’s position in the Apple vs Android, which platform is more secure debate, would require the apps to ask the users for permissions to gather and share users’ data. 

There are other privacy-related moves as well, but let us attend to IDFA first. 

1. Changes in IDFA and store-level control

What is IDFA?

Identifier for Advertisers is a unique identifier for all mobile devices which is used for targeting and measuring the effectiveness of the advertisements on a user level across all the mobile devices.

What is the update about?

For every app install, users will have to opt in to IDFA. When developing apps for iOS 14, app publishers will have to provide a summary of privacy practices on the basis of which users will decide whether they want to opt-in IDFA or not. 

The impact of this update lies in ad campaign becoming incapable of performing control recency, optimizing and measuring ad performance, or perform behavior-based segmentation. Additionally, the move is contributory to consent fatigue, which would increase the instances of users declining the data view request. 

The impact of the update on the advertisers will be two-fold – 

• Retargeting to users will not work in the iOS application development process if the users opt-out of sharing their IDFA. Brands that don’t use deterministic variables like a phone number or email id (like Google and Facebook do) will witness a reduction in the targetable audiences. 
• Because of the limited access to IDFA, brands will not be able to show relevant ads to the users, a move that might direly impact user experience and ad monetization efforts of iOS app development. 

2. Changes in app install attribution

iOS 14 comes with an updated SKAdNetwork interface that offers a method for Apple to notify the ‘ad network’ when a campaign creates app install conversion. 

The impact of this update is the negligence of another type of app conversions for which a mobile app campaign would want to optimize other than app installs. 

3. Control over geo-location access

Presently, iOS users have control over which apps access their location through the ‘Location Service’ setting. The new update will allow the users to opt-out of precise location sharing. And when that happens, only approximate geolocation data will be shared with the apps. 

4. Privacy report highlighting ‘tracking’ companies 

Apple presently comes with the feature of Intelligent Tracking prevention or ITP which blocks cross-domain tracking. With iOS 14, there will now be a ‘Privacy Report’ passed to the users in addition to the ITP. It will tell the users which companies it is blockchain from viewing their data. 

The impact of this update is more image-based than anything else. Brands have multiple use cases for tracking users – recency control, frequency capping, behavioral-based targeting, spend attribution, etc. But the update will give the users a perception that every company has the same tracking intent. 

How is Appinventiv Preparing for the Changed iOS 14 App Development Process?

iPhone app development has always been one of our strongest suits. We have always one of the first iOS app development company to run hypothesis testing on all the new updates. iOS 14 version is no different. 

Our team of iOS app developers has deep-dived into how iOS 14 impacts app creation and promotion and while we have looked into the changes that we will have to make the app ready for iOS 14. 

The primary step for us was to peruse the platform-wise recommendations for the iOS 14 update. 

• Facebook
• Google
• Apple

The documentations helped us get on top of the changes that were coming with iOS 14 and what we needed to do to prepare for them. Keeping technicalities aside, let us share our plans in terms of making your app pass Apple’s updated security principles in layman’s terms. But first thing first, let us look into the ways the app ecosystem is going to change in 2021. 

The way iOS 14 influence app development will see the following things happening – 

• The space between organic and paid revenue and installs will get blurry
• The efficiency of user acquisition and ad monetization will lower
• The user-level ad reporting will become functionally impossible with iOS 14
• Another impact of iOS 14 will be that retargeting campaigns will not be viable anymore 
• Apple’s SKAdNetwork is poised to become the source of ad attribution on iOS
• Post-install events will majorly be attributable for around 24 hours

In light of these changes, the first thing that we will be focusing on is ensuring that the SDKs we use across our iPhone app development services are up to date. Virtually every SDK – analytics, attribution, and ad monetization, etc. will have to be updated for accommodating iOS14. 

Secondly, we will shift our focus on top-of-funnel activities – like ad watch, tutorial completion, etc. – instead of button funnel-like subscriptions and purchases. 

Lastly, we will be revisiting how we ask for consent from the users. After ensuring that the users are having a good experience within the app, we will plan strategically-timed push notifications explaining how the tracking will elevate their experience in the application. Here’s a snapshot of what that would look like –

Other than these, going by the statistics that over 30% of the iOS users have already disabled IDFA sharing, we will be exploring new approaches to help our clients retain their growth marketing expectations without relying on personal information. Here are some of them – 

1.  Use SKAdNetwork for advertisement attribution

Apple has released SKAd Network that enables Apple to manage the attribution passed to the Registered Ad network. While there are ways to optimize and scale marketing with SKAdNetwork, like how it helps identify redownloads and track attribution, they are not very ideal because of multiple reasons –

•  Allows only click-based attribution
• No date stamp parameter is provided 
• The campaign IDs are limited to 100 per ad network. 

2.  Non-individually identifiable IP address-based tracking

Another way brands can negate the iOS 14 impact on app distribution is by relying on the users’ truncated IP addressed for advanced contextual targeting and attribution. This way, they won’t have to identify any individual user. 

If you are looking for an iOS application development company that is skilled to help migrate your existing application to iOS 14 while having a complete understanding and solutions to how iOS 14 impacts app creation, reach out to our team. 

The post iOS 14 Privacy Features and Their Impact on App Distribution appeared first on Appinventiv.

While there are significant changes you’ll have to do to make the app UI ready like implement dark mode along with taking care of how to apply scene delegate, and modal presentation; in this article, we are going to look into how to get an app ready for iOS 14, especially in a way that it won’t gravely affect the app marketing efforts. 

But before we head on to the part, let us recap the iOS 14 features. 

List of iOS 14 Features 

1.  Home screen with an app library

Apple is changing the home screen with iOS 14. Users will be able to remove the applications from the screen or even remove the screens. The apps also stay in the App Library which is one swipe away from the final home screen. 

App library groups all the apps in big folders which shows the recently used apps. It even enables the users to search for apps in the search box placed at the top of the screen. The folders are also automatically organized according to Health and Fitness, Social, etc. 

2.  Overhauled widget experience 

Widgets have been an integral part of the iOS ecosystem for a very long time but only at the backdrop as a vertical list of full-width boxes. 

With iOS 14 the tech giant is changing the widgets experience. They are now designed to have a bunch of new sizes and with more information. Above all, they can be dragged to the home screen. 

3.  Picture-in picture mode 

PIP mode is finally coming to the iPhone with the iOS 14 version. When making a FaceTime call or watching a video, you can easily swipe back to the home screen while the video or call screen will continue to appear on the screen. 

The users can even move the box around the screen or simply swipe it aside to make the tab little. 

4.  App clips

Taking inspiration from Google yet again, especially after Tim Cook agreed to relying on Google Search, Apple has launched App Clips with iOS 14. These are micro parts of the applications that enable users to use parts of apps without downloading, installing or signing up to the app to perform the tasks. 

iPhone app developers create App Clips ensuring that the experience is under 10 MB. They are also encouraged by Apple to use the Apple Pay and Sign In with Apple facility to prevent users from creating or logging in the application. With the ability of getting triggered through maps, web, messages, QR codes, and NFC tags App clips can help businesses acquire new customers.

5.  Substantial privacy tweaks 

Apple has always maintained a leg up in the Android vs iOS security faceoff and with iOS 14, the list of privacy features have been expanded. 

Users can give the apps details of their approximate location instead of exact location. Additionally, when an application asks for photos, you can select to share specific photos instead of the complete library. 

Taking privacy up a notch, iOS 14 update will show a green dot in the status when an application is accessing your camera and an amber dot when an application is accessing your microphone. 

6.  Apple Arcade updations 

It was only a while back when Apple Arcade was launched as a means to transform the gaming industry. With iOS 14, Apple is showing users games their Game Center friends are playing, accessing the recent games played, and making it easy to find and sort the Arcade games. 

7.  Expansive ARKit 4 tools 

Apple is expanding AR tools for every iphone app development company with ARKit 4. Launched with iOS 11, the tools now enable developers to place Location Anchors to make AR objects occupy a place in the real world. Additionally, a device with A12 Bionic chip can perform facial tracking with a front camera even when it’s not a TrueDepth module. 

They have also introduced a Depth API for iOS app developers to develop 3D mesh environments on iPad Pro having a LiDAR scanner.

Along with the above mentioned list of features, the process of getting an app ready for iOS 14 calls for an ios app development company to notify the users if the application is collecting a unique device code known as IDFA. The IDFA is a randomly generated code which Apple assigns to every device. The applications then use the codes for tying together the user activity. 

Here’s an example of this in works: Through Facebook, a shopping app and weather app might access the identifier. The platform then uses the cross-app data for placing targeted ads for the advertisers in the app. 

Facebook warned against the impact that the update would carry on how businesses promote themselves and monetize their advertisements. Facebook added, saying, “Because of advertisers’ reduced ability to accurately target and measure their campaigns, app developers and publishers should expect lower CPMs [i.e., views of their ads] on Audience Network and likely other ad networks on iOS.”

Let us dissect how iOS 14 would affect ad targeting in greater details. 

How Will iOS 14 Changes Affect Mobile Marketing & What Can You Do About It?

By giving users the choice to opt-in IDFA, Apple has made it extremely difficult for businesses to make personalized advertisements. The event is even giving brands second thoughts on whether or not to migrate apps to iOS 14.

For the users who don’t opt for tracking, IDFA will return 0s, making the process useless. Ona  default mode, a user will be opted out right when they launch the app. Once they get the notification, they can decide to either opt-in or confirm opt-out on an app to app basis. 

Several advertisement types like exclusion targeting, retargeting, segmentation, and lookalike audiences presently depend on the IDFA so this change will carry a deep impact on user acquisition and ad monetization. 

Here’s how businesses can get their app ready for iOS 14 to take control of the opt-in IDFA update situation. 

1.  Review present IDFA use 

It is important for the advertisers to do a complete internal review of the present IDFA usage. There are a few things that you should ask your iOS application development agency to look at:

• Look into the SDKs which are calling the IDFA, ensuring that you talk to the SDK providers if they have a solution for the IDFA requests. 
• Prepare and plan version release with updated SDKs.

2.  Prepare for consent 

Gaining user content should be your next priority task. If the users opt-in, you would be able to return to the pre-iOS 14 stage with a greater competitive advantage of high consent rates. In fact, now would be the best time to get on the activity. You can:

• Run test on user consent mechanic for existing and new users across apps. By getting on the task before the iOS 14 launch will allow you the space to run multiple design and content iteration of the pop-up. 
• You can do A/B testing on when to trigger the pop-up. The best bet would be to trigger it when the users have finished a specific activity in the app. 
• You can use an internal prompt in place of Apple’s pop-up. When a user says “yes” to the application’s internal prompt, the app can still prompt the users and then deep link them in the settings menu of the device to enable tracking in the app. 

3.  Relook your BI stack 

Your BI stack should be prepared for both consent and no consent situations. You should look into:

• Which data sets are linked together for analytics and figure out a way to stitch them together once iOS 14 is released. We suggest our partners focus on the ADID, IDFV, and UserID. 
• While the apps working minus IDFA would be able to place the contextual ads, they will not be able to use personalized ads. Knowing their worth, we would recommend brands to run multiple scenario analysis of Plan Bs and Plan Cs if the ad revenue drops. 

Besides these three preparatory steps, you should also consult with your app marketing partner about the updated ways on how to perform user acquisition and revisit the ways that can be adopted to increase the numeric value of the answer to how much money you can earn through an app.

The post How to Prepare Your App for iOS 14 Update appeared first on Appinventiv.

At WWDC 2020, Apple launched App Clips. It is the first sign of the app revolution that we have come across ever since the App Store was launched in 2007. App Clips, in addition to putting a restriction on IDFA are Apple’s new efforts in the direction of bettering app experience for the users through iOS 14. For the first time, the tech giant took user experience outside of application install. 

While the primary beneficiary of the launch is in fact the users who get to keep their home screen empty, Apple being one of the most developer-friendly platforms (as validated by the App Store 2018-19 stats) offers a huge advantage to business as well. The benefit which enables businesses to make their application performance visible first-hand in front of the million-apps crowded App Store. 

In the article, we are going to dig deep in how apple clips app helps in acquiring more customers through the help of high visibility. We will also look into the role that your iOS app development company would play in expanding your iOS application to App Clips. 

Table Of Content

1. What are App Clips and How App Clips Work?
2. How Are App Clips Made Discoverable?
3. How Can App Clips Help You Acquire New Customers?
4. Imagining App Clips Use Cases Across Industries
5. Looking for Expansion Into App Clips? Here’s How We can Help

What are App Clips and How App Clips Work?

The app clips are a small portion of your application which is discoverable when needed. The clips are designed to be lightweight and fast so that the users can open them expeditiously. From ordering a take-out to renting a scooter, users will be able to begin and complete the required task inside the app within seconds. 

App Clips offer your users two functionalities: to use a small part of your application and download the full application. 

Use the sub-part of your application – Under this capacity, users only function around that part of your application which they require to perform an event. This functionality is based on a specific feature or feature set of your application. 

Download the full application – For making it easier for your customers to access the entire application, you can give them the option to download the app from within the app clip.

How Are App Clips Made Discoverable?

The USP of the whole app clips experience is how they are discovered by the users. 

Here are the textual descriptions of how users discover your app clip on their devices. These will give you a picture of the extent of your app discovery when you use Apple clips app. 

App Clip Codes – By 2020 end, Apple will offer the tools needed for creating the app clip codes. But it doesn’t mean we cannot appreciate what is to come. The app clip code would have an encoded URL and an NFC tag, which would enable the code to eb tapped and scanned by the iPhone camera. 

NFC Tags – The users would be able to tap NFC tags – which you would have placed at specific locations – on their iPhone to launch an app clip. They will be able to perform the task even through a lock screen!

QR Codes – You can place QR codes in specific locations for enabling users to launch the app clip by scanning the code through their camera app or barcode reader. 

Safari App Banner – Users would be able to tap your web page configured with Smart App Banner to open the Apple clips app. 

Links in Message – By enabling sharing inside your app clip, users would be able to send it via iMessage to their acquaintances. The receiver, on the other side, will be able to open it straight from their messages. 

Cards in Maps – If your app clip is linked to a particular location, you can register it to appear on a place card in Maps, which users will be able to directly open. 

New App Library – App clips are devised to stop home screen clutter. However, the recently used Apple clips app can be found and launched from the Recents section in the new App Library.

How Can App Clips Help You Acquire New Customers?

There’s a long line at your grocery store, which is making people leave the store? No problem, customers can launch your app clip and pay, saving the wait time. Want to increase orders in your take-away coffee shop? Enable your customers to app clip trigger through NFC or QR code and order on the move. 

The examples that you read above are a clear sign of why companies should create app clips.

What is in it for you is that you get to present a quick in and out experience to customers. With app clips, the focus is never on superficial things like app spend time but on elements that matter – app discovery and app revenue. What’s more exciting is that with the close integration of Apple Pay, you don’t have to worry about saving payment information as long as your application supports “Sign in with Apple”.

App Clips come as a way to help your application stand out in the entire world. They are one of prime functionalities that can help you offer a truly omnichannel retail experience or for that matter any industry’s omnichannel experience. 

App discovery continues to be a prime issue for brands. Although there’s an app for everything, everyone who owns an app knows how difficult it is to convince the users to install the application – especially when they are concentrated on a few favorites. App Clips offers a workaround of this conundrum by enabling brands to showcase only the relevant information to their customers exactly when they need it, in a non-fussy manner. 

The support for offline applications through QR scan and NFC tags makes it a great way for the brick-and-mortar business owners to acquire customers. All they have to do is integrate the functionality of app clips in their business’s iPhone application. 

App Clips are a great way to get your business in front of the customers exactly when they need it – thus increasing not just your business visibility and revenue but also the value of application performance. What is the best part about it all is that with the already available robust discoverability architecture and the direct link with Apple Pay preserving privacy, there’s very less left for you to work on on a technical level. 

If you look at the present contactless-inclined business processes, App Clips here too plays a crucial role in ensuring that your business remains unaffected when we read into the impact of coronavirus on industries. App Clips will enable your business to connect with your customers in a contactless manner – since all the stages of making transactions, straight from discovering your app to inputting payment information, will now happen on their individual smartphones. 

Imagining App Clips Use Cases Across Industries

1. Financial Services – Apple, through Apple Cards is already benefiting small businesses to a great extent. Through App Clips, financial service businesses can offer their users quick in and out tasks without them having to install the application. 
2. Entertainment & Media Companies – Through App Clips, M&E companies can offer their customers a host of services like – purchasing tickets, joining a loyalty program, etc. All with the help of a NFC tag or QR code placed in their kiosk or through Smart App Banner integration on their website. 
3. Digital Workplaces – Using the app clip, employees would be able to put in their clock in and out time on the move – while keeping their device storage space unaffected. 
4. Museums or Historical Architectures – A museum can enable visitors to scan the visual codes placed next to displayed work. Visitors can then launch the app clip to view AR content or listen to audio comments. 
5. On-demand rental vehicle – A rental vehicle business can come with NFC tags which people can scan to then launch an app clip that would enable them to rent the vehicle straight from the stand. 

App Clips, as you must have gathered up until this point in the article, are a sure shot way to get your application in front of customers when they need it the most. However, there’s a catch. 

The efforts put in by your partnered iPhone application development company behind creating an app clip would decide its success.

Even though the users will be interacting with a portion of your application, it doesn’t mean that you can put user interface and user experience on the back seat. After all, if for any reason, your application fails to meet the quick in and out requirements at a time when your customers need you, your reputation will get harmed.  

Looking for Expansion Into App Clips? Here’s How We can Help

We are known in the industry as an iOS application development company which is the torchbearer of new technologies. Between the first announcement of App Clip and now, we have already studied its technicalities and have devised different use cases. 

We have already created successful prototypes of App Clips by following the App Clip design guidelines and development guide. And while they have helped us understand the prerequisites of designing and developing app clips, we have also identified ways to take your iPhone application a step ahead from those who simply use app clips. 

The ways are: 

1. Deep Linking – Although not necessary, we recommend having a deep linking practice in place to give users a seamless experience. In the absence of deep linking, when the users open the app clip, they will be taken to the initial app screen. However, when you use deep linking, the users would be able to open the screen which you invoked with the App Clip.
2. Siri Integration – We can integrate your application into Siri to widen its visibility among the users. Imagine the effect of Siri showing your application as the outcome of users’ queries on your app revenue. Cool isn’t it?

The post How Can App Clips Help Your Business Acquire More Customers appeared first on Appinventiv.

Since the inception of digital wallets and digital transactions in general, many curious startups and companies have come forward to contribute their innovative share of amazingness, including the financial domain.

And Apple, being a pioneer and the epitome of inventions, has yet again swept the world off its feet. 

From the first touchscreen iPhones to Macs, Apple has been killing every game it enters. And to the dismay of traditional financial providers, it has now unleashed its financial products “Apple Pay” and “Apple Card” to capture this market as well. 

It seems like Apple had it planned long ago – to offer all the services to the users at one place – their iPhone. 

Apple Pay released back in 2014, is now followed by Apple Card that was released only in August 2019.

So, while the debate of how these products benefit users has been doing the rounds, it will be interesting to speculate its positive effects on businesses around the world. More specifically, what will businesses gain by integrating Apple Card and Apple Pay into their mobility solutions?

The fact that experts believe 90% of the smartphone users will land on mobile payment method by the end of this year, is enough for startups and businesses that have invested in mobile app development to rethink about more payment gateways, Apple Credit Card integrated into Apple Pay being one of them.

Since Apple has not officially shared its views in this direction, we take it upon ourselves to unravel the truth. 

Let’s cover the whole ground starting from the basics and then work our way up to the crux of the discussion – How is Apple Credit Card/Apple Pay for small businesses an asset to cherish. After all, one must have crucial information about the product before taking dynamic decisions. 

What is an Apple Card and how it works?

“There’s never been a credit card this smart” – Apple

Apple Credit Card, or simply Apple Card is like any other credit card (digital and physical) only better. This product is a result of the collaboration between Apple and Goldman Sachs. 

For users, they first need to apply for an Apple Credit Card via the Wallet app. It only takes a few days in approval. This digital card can be used to make payments across multiple platforms. To apply for Apple Credit Card’s physical version, the process remains the same. 

Apple Card “practically lives on your iPhone” and “lets you do things you simply couldn’t do before” – What does this mean? You must be wondering.

Well, the reason why this product has bagged such hype in many Apple Credit Card reviews, is all due to its brilliant money management feature of the whole experience. Although most of the credit cards now show transactions and other important numbers, Apple Cards exceeds those common expectations. 

The card can be managed with the help of the Wallet app, which is also used for applying for the card. It gives users updated data on their spending patterns and helps them track. The Apple team yet again did it differently. The app color-codes recurring items you spend on and can track your weekly or monthly transactions with respect to locations they were transacted at. 

What are Apple Credit Card benefits?

These benefits will give a clear idea of why users are using Apple Cards to such a great extent and why many small businesses are integrating it into their products. 

Security

If there is one thing that Apple is hailed for is, you know, security. Be it the security of its hardware devices or software. This is something that also stands true for the Apple Card and Pay. Apple Pay purchases are highly secure. 

When signing up for an Apple Credit Card for your small business, you will be provided with a unique number in real-time which gets stored in the secure element of your iPhone. So, that code is needed whenever a purchase takes place along with a dynamically generated transaction ID. Further things that may require are Face ID. 

Moreover, one of the best Apple Credit Card benefits is that the company keeps all the data private by prohibiting Goldman Sachs from sharing or selling the data. 

Apple says “No fees”

The reason why Apple Card poses as an ideal choice for small business financing and personal use, of course, is it’s free. Yes, there are no Apple credit card fees whatsoever. No foreign transaction, annual, late, etc. charges are imposed on cardholders – something that your business can benefit from since users would be more inclined to use this option.

And one more fact that may skyrocket the popularity of Apple Card after the COVID-19 pandemic is that the company had offered temporary relief for payments for March and April to its users.

Apple Card Cash-back rewards

It is not a new concept. Nevertheless, Apple has still managed to leave its watermark. Apple Card rewards users 1% cashback on everything to users on Apple Card payment and 2% if they use Apple Pay.

Maps of purchased made

Pretty much the most interesting Apple Credit Card benefit is it allows users to see on the map where they made the purchase, no merchant codes, only the store name on the map. This eliminates the problem that credit cards often showed minimal location information, up until now. Something that banks can learn a lot from.

How does Apple Card help businesses?

Online transaction is the new black

If you own an E-commerce/M-Commerce business, then your business model relies on online sales. Here, Apple Pay for small businesses is a must-grab deal. Users can easily pay for their purchases with their Apple Card using Apple Pay -something that can help avoid the abandoned cart situation.

Without restricting to the commerce domain, Apple Card as a payment option will work wonders for gaming applications, subscription-based applications such as entertainment and music, and of course on-demand mobility solutions, just to name a few.

Security that sprouts user trust 

As we have discussed above, Apple Pay is a trusted and highly secure medium to perform online transactions. Allowing users to use Apple Card for your business will terminate any trust issues or any unfavorable preconceived notions they might have. 

And to be forward, this is not just a one-time thing, rather it has the potential to turn your one-time user/customer into a loyal one. The security promise is not just a point of relief to users but also the businesses, imparting assurance of protected transactions. 

Must-have to target younger demographics

As we are rolling towards the concept of a cashless economy, a majority of the participants in this notion are believed to be the millennials and younger demographic. 

Since the iPhone is indisputably the most popular smartphone among younger audiences, integrating Apple Card via Apple Pay into your mobile app might just be the push towards the success you were lacking. Moreover, offering multiple online payment gateway options will only add to your benefit. If you skip on this opportunity, there is a high probability of your probable customers going to your alternatives. 

Cashback rewards = increased sales

One of the benefits of Apple Card for businesses (indirectly) is the cashback rewards to the users. Since Apple offers a fair percentage of cashback on transactions made through Apple Card (via Apple Pay), this will encourage users to purchase from your mobile application or business if you have this option to offer.

Conversion boost

The advantages of streamlined and easy transactions ripple down to many deeper levels. One of them being increased conversion rates. Consequently, as your sales graphs rise upwards, your short and long-term profits will definitely take off too. 

After all, the mantra for businesses is to offer what’s in demand, and this is, without a doubt,  something of a need of the hour. In fact, according to a few industry experts, we might move on from cash and physical cards completely by 2030. Better start catching up, right? 

{Take a detour: Advantages of iPhone Application Development for Your Business}

Mobile applications using Apple Card via Apple pay

I have figured that having examples always helps in making an informed decision. So, here are a few renowned companies that identified the opportunities Apple Card has to offer and integrated it into their mobile applications.  

Nike

The company has integrated the Apple Card as a payment method in its Nike app, Nike.com, SNKRS, Nike Training Club, and so on. The move is the brand’s another step towards bettering customer experience – one that was strengthened with Nike’s acquisition of Celect for predicting users’ shopping behaviour.

T-mobile

T-mobile is a mobile communication subsidiary of Deutsche Telekom AG. The company has enabled Apple Pay and payment through Apple Card on its mobile app as well as website.

Uber 

Uber is a company that placed the on-demand model on the map. From ride-sharing to rental helicopter services to establishing JUMP, a rental e-scooter service, Uber has captured various domains. It has also incorporated Apple Card into its Uber mobile application and web apps 

UberEats

Another extended effort of Uber to capture the on-demand food delivery market, UberEats was invented. And guess what? This application is also using an Apply Card as a medium of payments.

{Also read: How Much Does it Cost to Build a Food-Delivery App like UberEats or GrubHub?}

Walgreens

Walgreens is one of the largest US-based pharmacy chains. To cater better services to its users via its mobile app and website, the company offers the option to pay via Apple Card using the Apple Pay app. 

Let us  help you integrate Apple Card into your app

This section is creative to give you a brief overview of Appinventiv’s process for integrating payment gateways like Apple Pay and Card into existing applications.

To offer excellent mobile payment experience in iOS apps, we use Stripe iOS SDK. It is a great tool known for its impeccable features like rich UI elements, powerful, protected interface, and customization.

The process is as follows –

1. We start by installing and configuring the SDK. The tools that we employ and are supported by Stripe are CocoaPods, Carthage, Fabric, Dynamic Framework, and Static Framework.
2. The next step involves configuring Stripe integration in the App Delegate. To configure our Stripe API keys, we use programming languages like Swift (which is the official language for iOS) and Objective, which is considered the next best.

Although this was just a sneak peek into the diligent efforts our team invests in the process. We test rigorously to make sure the application is performing its best with the new integrations.  

If you want to know the cost of integrating an Apple Card into your app, I suggest you browse through our detailed article – Payment Gateway Integration: The Process and What’s Next.

After discussing everything, it is pretty clear to see the opportunities that any business can grab for the long term just by adding this simple service into their business model. As we are leaning towards a cashless world, it’s better to at least keep up with the pace, if not staying ahead of the curve.

Some frequently asked questions related to Apple Card

Q. Does Apple offer small business discounts?

Absolutely. Apple is known to offer business discounts on online purchases. If you use your Apple Card via Apple Pay, you can avail of discounts no less than 3%.

Q.  Can I get an Apple Card for my business?

It is not a business card per se, at least not now. There are no such claims or promises from Apple to launch a business-specific card either.

The post How does Apple Card Benefits Small Businesses appeared first on Appinventiv.

Scaredly, the hackers are also on the same quest. They too wait for the users to initiate a connection request on the open network before they put their phishing brains into work and deprive them of their sensitive data or worse, money in their bank account. 

While HTTPS is effective to some extent, it is an SSL protocol which is known to make users safe  by being unbreakable and largely secure. But Man-In-The-Middle (MITM) attacks have found ways to breach this too. 

This is where SSL Pinning technique comes into the picture as one of the mobile app security best practices. Talking specifically about platforms, it is the ideal iphone app security solution that does an amazing job solving the issue. 

In this article, we are going to look into the types and process of incorporating SSL Pinning in iOS apps for preventing these Man In The Middle attacks. A process that is an active part of the OWASP mobile security testing practice. 

Types of SSL Certificates Pinning Method

There are majorly two methods for SSL Pinning test as discussed below:

• Pin the certificate – You can download the server’s certificate and bundle them in the app. At the runtime, the app compares the server certificate to ones that you have embedded. 
• Pin the public key – You can retrieve the public key of certificate in the code as a string. At the runtime, the application compares the certificate’s public key to one which is hard-coded in the code. 

Making a choice from between the two SSL pinning iOS methods is dependent on your server configuration and individual needs. When you choose the first option, you will have to upload the app when the server changes its certificate or it will stop working. When choosing the second option, you might violate the key rotation policy as the public key won’t change. 

Let’s now take a look at the steps to implement SSL Pinning in your iOS app. 

*Note: The steps mentioned below follow the process of iOS certificate pinning with Swift. 

How to Implement SSL Pinning in your iOS App

1.  NSURLSession

In the case of NSURLSession, the primary method for handling SSL pinning is URLSession:didReceiveChallenge:completionHandler:delegate. Developers will have to set the class to conform URLSessionDelegate and paste this function to the class:

The function would “request credentials from the delegate in response to an authentication request from the remote server.” The iPhone app developer will then compare certificates from the server with one saved in the app bundle. If the two certificates are found identical, authentication will let it pass and the client will be able to connect to the server.

2.  Alamofire Certificate Pinning

Alamofire is one of the most famous libraries for HTTP networking in Swift language. It comes with the built-in functionality for SSL pinning in iOS Swift and is extremely easy to use. Here’s how to make a secure iOS app with Alamofire certificate pinning.

Common Issues Associated With SSL Pinning Implementation & How to Solve Them 

The Quality Assurance Experts at reputed app development agencies, regularly test mobile apps for security vulnerabilities, including full network penetration. But there are many app testing agencies that don’t focus on these areas with the same enthusiasm. They seem reluctant when implementing this particular iPhone security solution in their apps.

Here are some of the prevalent reasons behind this –

• One of the biggest disadvantages of SSL pinning in iOS app is its implementation. The process is complex and it can force the developers to write the code again and again and complicate the app building process.
• Pinning iOS SSL certificates which are bound to change regularly can force the developers to update the app binary everytime certificate changes.
• Multiple efforts have to be taken to safeguard the ways to bypass iOS SSL verification.

Noting the repercussions that the stage’s absence can bring, here is how some common pitfalls are avoided by a reliable iPhone app development company. 

Testing the pin

Unlike regular app testing where you test whether or not everything works, the method for the SSL pinning test is that you’ll have to check whether something fails. You will have to focus on testing that the app cancels potentially compromised connections. If the app enables communication with a single endpoint, testing will be as simple as making the GET request to an arbitrary state. Ideally, in this case, the app must cancel the connection and the request should fail. 

Handling certificate change

Renewing a domain certificate retains the public/private key pair, but this is not always the case. But if you plan the update cycle rightly, you will be able to avoid the downtime for end users. 

Before the iOS SSL certificate is made active on the website, you must pin it in the app, in addition to the presently active certificate and then release an update. When we follow this step at Appinventiv to make a secure iOS app, we perform a quick test with the new certificate temporarily and test the app with both the certificates pinned. 

FAQs About SSL Pinning in iOS Applications

1.  Where to store sensitive data in an iOS app?

The app’s sensitive data should always be stored in iCloud or Keychain in iOS or even in the database after proper encryption.

2.  How does SSL work?

SSL Pinning is one of the most common iOS app security tips. But in order to understand what it means, you will first have to know how SSL works. 

• A browser attempts to connect with a website which is secured with a SSL. The browser then requests the web server to identify itself.
• Web server then sends the browser its SSL certificate copy.
• The browser checks if the SSL certificate must be trusted. If it can be, a message is sent to the web server.
• Web server then sends back an acknowledgement to begin the SSL encrypted session.
• The encrypted data is then finally shared between the browser and web server.

Ending Thoughts

Although SSL pinning is considered secure and widely used whenever encryption is needed, another layer of protection is always welcomed when building high-risk apps. SSL pinning allows you to verify the server’s identity on top of the SSL chain of trust verification.

With SSL pinning, you can refuse all connections except the ones with the designated server whose SSL certificate we’ve saved into our local bundle. A potential drawback of this is that you need to update the app whenever the server’s SSL key is changed. 

In case you are also planning to launch an iOS app with SSL pinning, it can be a good start to consult the best iOS app development company.

The post How to Perform SSL Pinning in iOS Apps appeared first on Appinventiv.

The iPhone app development platform has evolved considerably in the past. After going through four massive version updates, Swift released the latest two versions, Swift 5.0 and Swift 5.1. The remarkable functions of both these versions play a significant role in strengthening the language. 

The programming language is poised to become a game-changer in the mobile app development industry, with its latest version, Swift 5. 

Whether you want to grow your business as an entrepreneur or looking for ways to scale as a startup, Swift offers you all the advantages of developing the best in class, highly functional and completely customised iOS applications. That’s one of the reasons why LinkedIn, Lyft and others have upgraded their iOS mobile application in Swift. Here are some other apps made with Swift: 

Let us first look into what both these versions have to offer. Then, we’ll look into Swift 5 features that make the updates an ideal choice for iOS app development companies. 

What was introduced with Swift 5 Update?

Apart from the revolutionary ABI stability, the Swift runtime is also now added in the present and future Apple platform’s OS versions: iOS, macOS, watchOS, and tvOS. 

Swift 5 features also come with a plethora of new capabilities that act as the building blocks of Apple’s vision and give a new direction to the advantages of the swift programming language. 

*For in-depth insights, head on to Swift 5 release notes. 

Language Updates

1. Binary Compatibility and a Stable ABI 

ABI was declared stable for Swift 5 app development. As a result, Swift libraries have been incorporated in every iOS, tvOS, watchOS, and macOS, which was earlier a problematic element whenever engineers had to develop apps for iOS. The applications will now be easier to develop and much smaller in size since they will not include any libraries. 

2. Standard Library Updates 

Swift 5’s standard library comes with the following new feature set:

1. The string has been reimplemented with the UTF-8 encoding which results in faster code. 
2. Better support for raw texts in the string literals. 
3. The SIMD vector and Result types have been added.
4. Performance improvements in Set and Directory.
5. Enhancements in String implementation, giving flexibility for constructing text from data. 

3. Additional Compiler and Language Updates 

Swift mobile development facilitates  exclusive access to the memory, both for debugging and releasing builds. It supports dynamically callable types which helps in improving interoperability with dynamic languages like JavaScript, Python, and Ruby. 

It also implements these language proposals:

1. Handling future enum cases
2. Literal initialization through coercion
3. Introduce user-defined dynamic “callable” types
4. Supports ‘less than’ operator in the compilation conditions
5. Identity key path 
6. Flatten nested optionals emerging from ‘try?’

4. Package Manager Updates

The Swift Package Manager comes with a series of new features in the Swift 5 app development version, which includes: Dependency mirroring, customized deployment targets, target-specific build settings, and the capability to generate the code coverage data. In addition to this, the swift run command includes a capability to import libraries in REPL with building an executable. 

Swift 5 also implements these Package Manager proposals from Swift evolution process:

1. Dependency Mirroring 
2. Platform deployment settings
3. Target specific build settings

What was introduced with Swift 5.1? 

Swift 5.1 grows on the strength of Swift 5 with features like module stability and other new features that extend the ability of language and standard library like: opaque result types, property wrappers, new APIs for String, diffing for appropriate collection types, etc. 

Together, Swift 5.1 makes it easy to design APIs and lower the common boilerplate code. 

Here are the features that Swift 5.1 comes with: 

1. Module Stability 

Swift 5.1 makes it possible to create binary frameworks which can be shared with others who leverage language’s added support for module stability. This, in turn, makes it extremely convenient and speedy for developers to develop apps for iOS. 

It defines a new text based module interface file which describes the binary framework API, enabling it to get compiled with codes with the help of different compiler versions. 

2. Standard Library Updates 

The Swift 5.1 standard library comes with following new features, making it extremely easy to understand how to make apps with Swift 5:

1. Support for updating and handling diffs on the collection of appropriate types. 
2. Greater flexibility for initialization of an array. 
3. APIs for working with Strings – developing and handling contiguous strings, helper for working with Unicode text, and general initializers for Range and String.index. 
4. Identifiable protocol for extending reductions, vector swizzles, and vectors. 

3. Language Server Protocol 

The Swift 5.1 OSS toolchain packages for Ubuntu and macOS include binaries for the SourceKit-LSP, which is an implementation of LSP for C based languages and Swift. 

4. SwiftSyntax Updates 

It has been re-architecture with a separate focus on improving the performance by using parser from Swift compiler. Additionally, performance of the syntax tree visitation and its related operations have been improved through re-architecturing of internal data structures. 

5. Additional Language and Compiler Updates 

Swift 5.1 comes with these new language features:

1. Property wrappers introducing consistent context for defining the custom access patterns for property values like – delayed initializers, thread specific storage, atomic operations, etc. 
2. The return keyword is not needed for a single expression getters or functions. 
3. Self can be used for value types and classes. 
4. The compiler synthesizes default values for the properties with default initializers. 

How do Businesses benefit from it? 

Although the majority of the features introduced with Swift 5 and Swift 5.1 are in favour for Swift app builders, some of them can be translated into business benefits as well. 

One of the key features that directly impact businesses – the one that the Apple industry had been waiting for since Swift 1.0 – is ABI (Application Binary Interface) stability.   

While sounding much like a developer’s problem, what this means in practicality is that Apple couldn’t include Swift programming language support in the operating systems, because an app written in Swift 2 couldn’t run with Swift 3. Simply because, it wouldn’t work with the language support binaries of Swift 3.

The solution that was available to the developers was to include the Swift libraries in the app bundle which would get downloaded from the App store. This, in turn, increased the size and the storage requirement of the application. And became one of the biggest disadvantages of swift iOS programming language.

But with Swift 5 making ABI stable, the industry has now received a permanent solution to these user side issues. It would enable the developers to run the application in all the upcoming Swift versions. Meaning, the code written in the Swift 5 app development process will run on Swift 6, 7, and so on, an event that makes Swift a preferred language for Enterprises and Startups. 

This move is speculated to be the one that would bring language several strides ahead in the Swift vs Objective-C comparison. 

Here are the business benefits of Swift 5 update:

• Smaller app size: Swift 5 makes the language binary compatible. Meaning, the end result of Swift mobile development would be significantly smaller for the users to run on their new operating system – iOS 12.2, watchOS 5.2, macOS 10.14.4, and tvOS 12.2. 

• Faster Launch: Another advantage of this is the faster launch time, since every dynamic library which is used by an application (which increases the launch time) will be cached in the memory and shared among the applications. 

• Greater Performance: Users do not want to work in a broken application. And with app freeze and glitches being the biggest reason behind app uninstallation rate, it is imperative for a business to avoid it. The Swift 5’s ABI stability helps apps in behaving better and offering enhanced performance.

But. 

How small is too small? Let’s answer through the help of some live cases of Swift app development for iOS –  

• Apollo for Reddit: comes with an app size of 35.7 MB. Here, the 7.5 MB is made up of Swift libraries. Now when the app gets updated to Swift 5, the size will be reduced by over 20% and come around at 30 MB.  
• Chirp an app that brought Twitter to Apple Watch comes with a size of 28.8 MB, which is inclusive of 11.6 MB made of Swift libraries. This, when updated to Swift 5, gets reduced by over 30%, bringing the size down 20 MB. 

• Readability: One of the key reasons why it is best to choose Swift is due to its readability. It is relatively easy to modify, read and write and the clean syntax renders it a special uniqueness. It requires a lesser number of lines of code than Objective-C, when compared to Swift apps. 

Apps created with Swift not only decrease the development cost but also the development time. 

In a blog post talking about the future of Swift language, Donny Wals said, “Now that we have Module Stability and ABI Stability in Swift, the language is likely to change at a slower rate than we’re used to. We should see less radical, source breaking changes and the language should slowly mature into a beautiful, fast and stable language that will be a great basis for your applications for years to come.”

Is it good to build an app in swift 5? Yes. The time is right for businesses with iOS apps to get the code re-written in Swift 5 and for new businesses to build apps on Swift 5 and benefit from the impeccable user experience. 

FAQs 

Q. Do iOS apps have to be written in Swift? 

No, Objective-C and Swift are the two main programming languages used to build iOS apps. While Objective-C is an older programming language, iOS app development with Swift has the potential to develop responsive, feature-rich applications. So, if you have been thinking of developing iOS apps, swift for mobile apps is the way to go. 

Q. Is Swift enough for iOS?

Yes, Swift is modern, safe, more sophisticated than Objective-C, and enables high-level interactivity for developing iOS Apps.

Q. What is Swift app development? 

iOS app development with Swift is interchangeably used for Swift app development or Swift iOS app development. 

The post Why should Businesses develop their next iOS apps using Swift 5? appeared first on Appinventiv.

From the myriad of features, it is loaded with, we couldn’t help but notice one of the significant contributions it made to the app world – Apple Arcade.

Apple Arcade is a full-fledged gaming hub that is entirely going to change the way how apps are developed and how users buy them. Based on a subscription-based business model, Apple Arcade is an avenue for indie game developers to create impeccable games worth discovering and playing.

The subscription priced at $5 per month will provide the users with access to 100+ new games which are no cast-offs, whereas more games might be available at the launch. The games offered in the subscription plan are high-quality fare from renowned and established studios like Annapurna Interactive and Ustwo Games of Monument Valley fame. The games belong to genres ranging from strategy and fantasy to absurdist golf.

The wild thing about Apple Arcade is that at such low priced subscription, you get facilities like playing unlimited games, syncing of your games between Apple devices like iPhone, iPad, and Apple TV, and download the games to play offline. In fact, the one subscription plan can be shared among five family members. If this isn’t the full value of your money, we don’t know what is.

Besides everything, the one that has made Apple Arcade revolutionary, without a doubt, is the elimination of elements like ads and in-app purchases – the very backbone and major contributors to the gaming app economy. Though the notion of one subscription to play all games may sound preposterous to other organizations, it can be seen as a positive nudge to direct the gaming industry towards something more salutary rather than just cash draws.

Pay once and Play Many Games

If you look at the top-performing apps in the App Store, you will find that 50 grossing games have in-app purchases: out of 50 most downloaded free games, forty-one have them.  In fact, among the games, you pay for upfront, the top 50 still try to accumulate more money as you play the games.

The in-app purchases are a major source of revenue for the app economy, and has been for decades. The free-to-downloads games also entice users to spend money on the app be it in the forms of Pokéballs in Pokémon Go or other digital widgets. This buying of rewards and digital widgets have come under scrutiny as critics have started to consider this trade as gambling. 

Apple had been a major part of all this as it has been taking 30% cut from all in-app purchases. However, Apple has also been active in promoting apps that do not offer in-app purchases. This is evident from the fact that in 2015, Apple dedicated a whole section of the App Store to the games that were “Pay Once and Play”. Apart from this one generous act, these games had to face a lot of competition as their freemium contenders seemed more promising to the users, though they later started to ask for in-app purchases. 

Ryan Cash, the  founder of Snowman, the indie studio behind the popular Alto’s Adventure series said that “There was this wave of indie games in the last five to 10 years that had a bit of a surge, but it seemed like in the last two or three years that market was starting to fall apart a little bit,” and “It just became harder and harder for those indie developers to make money doing experimental things. There are many developers I heard say they’ll never make a mobile game again, or if I do it’s going to be free to play.”

This exodus is now low in numbers. As per SensorTower, in August 2014, 37% of the App Store games were paid. This amount dropped to 13% last month. The amount of paid games released on the App Store this August was as low as 5.5%. In fact, last month, the revenue generated by the paid apps was only 1.4% of the total App Store game revenue. This shift might be considered as a reaction to the changed Apple guidelines on in-app purchases.

However, the biggest publishers won’t give up on in-app purchases instantly.  Sensor Tower cofounder Alex Malafeev said- “Free-to-play will continue to be the dominant model by which the majority of mobile game revenue is generated,” and “It has proven to be the ideal method of monetizing the type of ‘drop-in, drop-out’ experiences the majority of casual players want from their mobile devices.”

Nevertheless, Apple Arcade will definitely help indie developers in developing original and ambitious games that will get the deserved recognition. Moreover, it rewards games that are originally developed keeping the iOS platform in focus, rather than knock-offs and extended versions of games originally created for other platforms, increasing the UX.

Arcade Fire

An Apple Arcade launch game named “Where Cards Fall”, had been in the making for a decade. Sam Rosenthal, the creator, first thought of it as a student project at the University of Southern California. He initially thought of the puzzle game as an iPad-only encounter, which can still be sensed even from the trailer. 

Rosenthal created Snowman almost four years ago, expanding his vision to the iPhone and Apple TV.  

Cash remarked- “The last few years, we’ve been thinking about this dilemma where we want everyone to experience it, but it’s certainly not a free-to-play game. It would be absolutely destroyed with ads,” and “We knew it was going to be a premium game. And the problem there is that Where Cards Fall is the kind of game that would probably be $20. Or if we made the game 99 cents, for example, it cheapens the value of it, and we’re still not going to reach the kind of people you would reach with a free-to-play game.”

Apple Arcade for both Cash and Rosenthal is a boon, for they can now launch their game “ Where Cards Fall” on it, as it poses as a sustainable business model for the game. In fact, on Apple Arcade the game has a higher possibility of being found by a broader audience.

Cash further says “Apple Arcade may get them in with a golfing game or another action game or a racing game, and then stumble upon Where Cards Fall and try it, whereas they wouldn’t necessarily have spent that money upfront on their own,” and that “It’s a new way for people to discover gaming.”

Nonetheless, Apple Arcade comes with its own pitfalls. It is a curated experience which means that developers may feel left out. Because the subscription is so affordable, it makes users question the quality of games or at least stops them from spending any extra money in the app.

After considering everything, what can be surmised is this – Apple Arcade will encourage developers to create fun and more engaging games in their own right along with exploring structures that are different from the free-to-play category. 

Well, there is no saying that every developer will do so, for they may be paid out in part based on the time spent on their games. This means that they will try to keep the users on their apps for as long as they can. This is the strategy that Apple follows in its News Subscription. The only difference is that the users will not have to pay any extra buck outside their subscription, no matter how long they play the games for.

Besides, not only indie but big hitters like Ubisoft, Konami, Square Enix have also contributed and played their part in the Apple Arcade launch lineup. As far as we can see, Apple Arcade is going to be a positive influence on the gaming industry and who knows, might inspire other major providers to follow its example.

The post Apple Arcade- A Means To Transform The Mobile Gaming Industry appeared first on Appinventiv.

This has been keeping the users hooked to their smartphone screens and media channels on their toes to cover everything right from the day of iOS 13 beta 1 release to iOS 13 beta 4 update. 

Well, the wait and anticipation is over now. 

As announced back in the Apple September Event, iOS 13 launched yesterday, i.e, on 19th September, 2019 at 10am PST.

The successor of iOS 12 landed into the Apple market with plenty of new iOS 13 features for users, ones that we are going to cover next.

Features Roundup: Top 8 Features that iOS 13 Has been Launched With

1. Dark Mode

One of the top iOS 13 features that has entered the market is Dark Mode.

As the name hints, this feature turns the device and app screens black with text written in white font. This mode is expected to enhance the readability experience of users.

2. Find My

In the new iOS version, the two popular options – ‘Find My Friend’ and ‘Find My iPhone Apps’ is clubbed into a single app, called ‘Find My’.

This application, with a simple and seamless interface, let users easily locate their missing devices and get the whereabouts of their loved ones. The best part is that it can track devices that are offline too.

3. Apple Maps

iOS 13 has also revamped Apple Maps. 

The app now have a 3D look with a detailed map data, much like Google Street View. It has also come up with the possibility to share your ETA when using directions to reach to a particular location. 

4. Sign in With Apple

Keeping its focus on delivering better privacy and security solutions, Apple has also introduced ‘Sign in With Apple’ option in iOS 13.

Under this option, users are no longer required to register their original email address on third-party applications. They are able to use a unique and randomly generated email address by Apple for registration across different applications.

In addition to this, Apple has also introduced a new location tracking options for users. Through this feature, users are able to restrict tracking of their location till they are using the application. 

Both these privacy and security options will prevent third-parties to get access to user data. But, to some limit. Meaning, Apple has tweaked its rules for Sign In with Apple and other privacy options to give third parties an option to access user data only in certain circumstances, which are needed to deliver a personalized experience.

5. Photos App

Another feature that would be loved by Apple users, especially millennials, is the revamped Photos app.

The app now lets you create a Photos library in a way that one can see highlights based on day, month, and year. This will ease the browsing process and help users revisit their favorite memories.

Also, the photo editing tools available in the application has brought new effects and features for editing images and videos smartly.

6. Shortcuts

The Shortcuts app has also come up with some significant improvements in iOS 13.

Introduced in iOS 12, the application is now a built-in and would act as a default app, offers more conversational facility, and give suggestions related to creating personalized routines.

Not only this, the feature, is announced to be updated with an Automation feature that will let users create automations within the app in upcoming iOS 13.1 update.

7. Improved Health

iOS 13 has also introduced some new and helpful health options:-

• Cycle Tracking: The application enable users to track their menstrual cycle and determine the fertile days.
• Noise App: The app analyzes sound level in real-time and informs users when the noise is turning harmful to their ears.

[Also Read: iOS 13 brings new features to Apple Health App]

8. QuickPath Keyboard

In iOS 13, Apple has also updated its default keyboard with swiping functionality. Something that is one of the features Apple borrowed from Google’s Android.

This feature, which is termed as ‘Quick Path’ keyboard, lets users swipe between letters instead of typing.

Additionally, iOS 13 has introduced 38 new keyboard languages including Mongolian, Cantonese, Assamese, Nepali, Sidhi, and Tongon. This is expected to bring two-fold benefits to Apple – It would help the brand enjoy the perks of localization and enhance customer loyalty.

Additionally, the new iOS operating system is also loaded with features like Screen time limit, low data mode, family sharing hotspot, enhanced memoji customization, profile picture in messages, voice memos, and more.

Now that you know what features has iOS 13 came loaded with, it is likely that you must be excited to see the update rolling out on your device.

As always, Apple has made iOS 13 compatible with the latest devices only.

What Devices Will be Compatible with iOS 13 Version?

Here is the list of iOS 13 compatible devices:-

• iPhone 11
• iPhone 11 Pro
• iPhone 11 Pro Max
• iPhone XS
• iPhone XS Max
• iPhone XR
• iPhone X
• iPhone 8
• iPhone 8 Plus
• iPhone 7
• iPhone 7 Plus
• iPhone 6s
• iPhone 6s Plus
• iPhone SE

That means, iPhone 6 or older is not enjoying the iOS 13 compatibility. So, if you have an iPhone 6 or older, you can either keep yourself content with iOS 12 update or will have to buy a new smartphone.

But, in case, you are lucky enough to find your device name in the list, here’s how to prepare your device and enjoy the latest OS version on your device.

How to Prepare Your Device for iOS 13 Update?

When it comes to preparing your iPhone for iOS 13, here are a few things you must keep in mind:-

1. Your phone must be fully charged or near a plug.
2. While the new iOS 13 update is of nearly 1.5GB to 2GB of storage space, more memory will be consumed during the installation process. So, ensure that your phone has nearly 4GB of storage space free.
3. Taking backup of your iPhone is must to prevent data loss. You can either take backup to the iCloud or connect your phone with computer to transfer important data and files.

How to Install iOS 13 on Your iPhone?

Note: Millions of Apple fans will be installing iOS 13. Because of this, the installation speed is expected to be slow.

An alert regarding software update will hit on your device. You can even check if the update has rolled out on your device by manually by following this path: Settings > General > Software Update.)

Tap on ‘Update’ option. As soon as you click on update option, the downloading process will start.This will take a while. So, it is advisable to keep your phone untouched till the new iOS 13 update is being rolled out on your device.

While it seems that iOS 13 is a big treat for the users, it has come up with exciting features and opportunities for Apple developers as well. 

So, let’s wrap up this article by having a look at what iOS 13 update means to mobile app developers.

What iOS 13 Launch Means for the Apple Developers?

1. Faster App Install Option

The biggest change that iOS 13 has brought in the lives of iPhone application developers is in terms of app performance and installation process.The app launch will be 2x faster than before. Also, the app download file and update file will be 30% and 60% smaller when compared to those in iOS 12.

This will enable developers to deliver better experience to their users and cut down the risk of app uninstallation, which was basically due to low speed and higher storage requirement.

2. AR Update

Another iOS 13 feature that developers are relishing is better AR options.

With the AR update introduced in iOS 13, iOS application developers will be able to integrate people’s movements into their applications. This way, deliver a more immersive and engaging experience to their target audience.

3. Siri Integration with iOS Apps

Earlier, integrating Siri into iOS Apps was a tricky task. But now, with the advent of iOS 13, it will be a seamless and streamlined process. App developers will be able to integrate and employ Siri’s functionality into their application without any configuration required at the user end.

4. App Store Update

Last but not least, iOS 13 is also bringing a major App Store update. The revamped App Store is getting dark mode, new app update option,and more. 

This update will encourage iPhone app developers to introduce dark mode to their app development process.

[Also Read: iOS 13 with 6 New Security Features]

The post iOS 13 is Live: Here’s How to Download it on Your Devices appeared first on Appinventiv.

On an annual premise, Apple gives the world, especially the app entrepreneurs, reasons for why they should choose reliable iphone application development company to start their app entrepreneurship journey in. Reasons that are driven by the innovation that they keep on adding, packaged within their yearly updates.

These updates are not just something that the iOS app developers of  New York and entrepreneurs wait for but are also ones that Google waits to take inspiration from. 

And now with the official iOS 13 release just around the corner, the waiting eyes have yet again turned towards Apple.

Talking of these innovative updates, let’s do a roundup of all the changes that iOS version history have seen over time, starting from the time when they were not even called ‘iOS versions’. 

The Evolution of Apple iOS: The History of iOS from Version 1.0 to 13.0

iPhone OS 1

Released in 2007, Apple’s mobile operating system version was not even called iOS back then. It was iPhone OS – the FIRST iPhone OS. The exact stage where the comprehensive history of iOS started. 

The breakthrough that the version brought is something that is very difficult to explain to the current modern-day iPhone users who have now become used to the shine of today’s iPhone and have little remembrance of where it all started. 

It was the time when the features like Visual Voicemail, Multi-Touch Screen, and Integration of iTunes were considered a revolutionary advancement. A set of advancements that were brought around by Apple in iPhone OS 1. 

Now although the iOS 1 was a major breakthrough in the iOS version history, it lacked elements that would in some year become an inherent part of the operating system – Photos, Calendar, Notes, Camera, Mail, support for third-party apps, etc. One that we would encounter as we continue to explore the evolution of Apple’s iOS. 

iPhone OS 2

Released in 2008, a year after the iPhone became a big hit in the world, Apple released iPhone OS 2.0 to sync in with the launch of its iPhone 3G, which marked the step in the evolution of Apple iOS.

The biggest feature introduced with iPhone OS 2 was the Apple App Store which came in with support for around 500 third-party and native apps. 

Next in line of innovations that came with iPhone OS 2 was the iOS SDK. It was with the second version of the OS when Apple provided iOS app developers of New York and California with a kit to help develop iOS apps. 

Lastly, along with a few updates to its current offering, iPhone OS 2 started the trend of introducing a range of features that were present on other platforms – one of which was giving full support to Microsoft Exchange for calendars, contact, and push emails. Apple also introduced contact search and multiple-selection for emails with iOS 2. 

iPhone OS 3

The release of iPhone OS 3 was aligned with the launch of iPhone 3GS. 

It came along with a slew of changes which would define Apple’s iOS through the years that were to come. The changes included a new copy-paste feature, spotlight search, support for MMS in Messages app and the capability to record videos through Camera application along with push notification functionality – which was launched in the market for the first time. 

Another notable element of the version was its support to iPad, whose 1st generation was launched in 2010 – the same time around which iPhone OS 3.2 was released. 

iPhone OS 3.2 set new UI paradigm for a larger screen – this was the time when skeuomorphism was introduced in the Apple world. New app designs were also introduced to incorporate the large real estate that was now present in Apple. 

iOS 4

The iOS that is up and active in today’s Apple ecosystem is what saw its foundations in 2010 with iOS 4. This was the stage where the complete evolution of Apple’s iOS started. 

It was in iOS 4 when Apple shifted its focus on giving the power of multi-tasking to its users. Features like iBooks, FaceTime, Personal Hotspot, AirPrint, and AirPlay, which sees themselves to be a prominent part of Apple devices today were debuted back in 2010 with iOS 4.  

Also, with iOS 4, Apple for the first time dropped support for a device, for iOS 4 was not compatible with the 1st generation iPod touch and original iPhone. 

iOS 5

Apple replied to the rising trend of cloud computing and wirelessness with iOS 5 in 2011. 

It was the first time when iCloud was launched in the Apple world along with the capability of activating iPhone wirelessly and also the feature of syncing with iTunes through Wi-Fi. Two other primal Apple features were introduced with iOS 5 in the face of Notification Center and iMessage. 

The one breakthrough element of iOS 5 was replacing Voice Control with a virtual assistant known as Siri. The assistant, which has come to grow in the same popularity pool as that of iPhones was now giving answers to users’ questions ina natural language over both web and OS at a beta stage. 

iOS 6

Announced at the Apple’s Developer Conference in 2012, the new OS version came with a number of changes along with the revamp of one major app present on the platform – Maps. 

It was in iOS 6 when Apple dropped the support for Google Maps – a feature that it was using since the beginning of 2007. A new revamped Maps was launched with iOS 6 which featured turn-by-turn navigations, Siri’s integration, and 3D Flyover mode. 

Siri which was introduced at a Beta stage in iOS 5 now saw an upgrade in iOS 6. Through the version, users could now get answers to schedules, sports scores etc. Also, users could now directly use Yelp, Twitter, and Facebook (which was now integrated into Apple devices). 

Next in the iOS 6 additions’ list was Passbook. While still a little immature in the mobile payment sector, the app was seen collecting payment types, coupons, tickets, boarding passes, and rewards cards and everything else with a barcode in one place. 

There were a number of other enhancements that we saw with iOS 6, such as enhancements in the reading list, iCloud tabs,  FaceTime running over cellular and a much better Apple ID integration, etc. 

iOS 7

Released in 2013, iOS 7 was a result of the efforts that Jony Ive took upon taking the place of Scott Forstall who parted ways with Apple following the backlash that Apple Maps received in the last update.

It was the first time in Apple’s history when skeuomorphism was replaced by Flat Design which was termed to be an overly simplistic UI design founded on the idea of layering. 

In addition to the new design, a series of new features were added while several enhancements were brought around in existing Apple feature set. 

To start with, a new Control Center which allowed quick access to several apps like Wi-Fi, Do Not Disturb, Bluetooth, Sliders for brightness and volume, etc. with a swipe up from the bottom of the screen was launched. 

In addition to Control Center, the AirDrop functionality was also launched by Apple for the first time in iOS 7. It allowed the users to share files and media with the people around them using iOS as well. 

With the launch of iOS 7, the days of opening App Store to click on “update all” to update the applications were long gone. Users now got the option to choose Auto-Update without being reminded to update an application. 

The last prominent introduction of iOS 7 version was the Touch ID, the feature that now let the users unlock devices using only their thumbprint. 

In terms of enhancements, the multi-tasking ability of iOS 7 saw a massive improvement both in terms of implementation and interface. By double-clicking on the home button, the users now saw full-page previews of their active apps while it was equally easy to close them. 

iOS 8

While with iOS 7 brought around a massive amount of visual changes to the Apple platform, iOS 8 released in 2014, was a refinement of the designs with a special focus on expanding the feature set and improvement in the workflows. 

The one impressive elements of iOS 8 were the interactivity that was now seen between iPhone/iPad and Mac computers. 

Users were now able to seamlessly pass around information between desktops and mobile devices. AirDrop too allowed the users to transfer files wirelessly between the device types. 

Users now even were able to send in messages and take calls from their Mac desktops as once limited to only mobile devices. 

In iOS 8, Apple for the first time added the support for third-party widgets in the Notification Center that would offer real-time information to the users, specific to the stock information, weather updates, etc. 

Besides these, iOS 8 was the first time Apple launched the idea of HomeKit and HealthKit in the market in addition to the Family Sharing functionalities. 

HealthKit: Users could now save all their health data coming in from third-party fitness trackers in one place. 

HomeKit: The feature made iPhones the remote that controlled the entire house, thanks to partnerships that Apple has now extended with several home automation products. 

Family Sharing: The functionality allowed sharing of songs, TV shows, apps, etc between 6 different accounts linked with the same credit card. 

Siri also faced several upgradations like activation through voice command and the possibility of making iTunes purchase through Siri interface, etc. All the enhancements brought Siri closer to what Apple had envisioned in its Virtual Assistant. 

iOS 9

Released in 2015, iOS 9 was driven by the public demand on making the technical foundation of iOS stronger as compared to working on the design and feature side of it all. 

And this is just what Apple did with iOS 9. 

While a few features like Night Shift were added and apps like Notes app and Maps app were updated and Passbook became ‘Wallet’, the version focused mainly on solidifying the OS for the future to come. 

A major round of improvements was made in the line of responsiveness, stability, speed, and performance. Several iOS 9 features like Low Power Mode were launched to ensure that the performance quality remains intact for the users even in case of low battery.

In addition to these, the official Public beta program was made open for the developers around the globe like iOS app developers of New York, California, and much more and users who wanted to experiment around new updates that came up in Apple. 

iOS 10

The major features of iOS 10 which were released in 2016 were customization and interoperability. 

Applications were now given the feasibility to interact with each other, allowing an app to use features of some other application, without even launching the second app. Siri also now became available for third-party app usage, while new apps were now being built in the iMessages. It was around this time when comparisons were drawn between iOS 10 and Android N. 

Users now had new ways to customize their entire experience ranging from deleting built-in applications to adding new effects and animations in messages – known as emojis. 

Maps also received a redesigned interface. The Home app now managed the HomeKit enabled accessories while Photos got introduced with an algorithmic search and media categorization known as ‘Memories’. 

iOS 11

Apple announced the release of iOS 11 in 2017 at the WWDC. 

It was the first time when ‘Files’ was launched – the app which went on to become iPad users go-to app for searching, organizing, and browsing files on their devices from the Dropbox, iCloud Drive, and Box application. 

A new dock feature also found itself being introduced in the users’ devices which now allowed users to open and switch applications instantly with one swipe. 

There was a new Drag and Drop function which allowed users to move photos, files, and text from one application to another. The Notes app too got a new feature which allowed users to search for handwriting and gave them the capability to scan and mark documents. 

A new prominent addition in the iOS 11 version was that of ARKit – a prominent part of the evolution of Apple iOS. It allowed the developers to introduce the power of AR to millions of the iOS devices active across the world. 

In terms of online payment, Apple Pay was integrated into Messages, making it easy for users to send money to their friends through messages. Apple also introduced an Apple Pay Cash Card to enable users to shop online and inside the application in addition to giving them the ease to transfer money to their personal bank accounts. 

In addition to these, a series of enhancements were brought in such as App Store redesign, Siri getting a new voice, Maps and Control Center setting getting introduced with a newer set of features, etc. Additionally, iOS 11 has come with a series of new APIs like ML API, Vision API, and IdentityLookup. These new APIs are impacting businesses in a number of different ways.

The functionality set that iOS 11 brought along gave the mobility world new stances to draw a comparison between iOS 11 and Android O, one where iOS stood several points ahead of Android. 

iOS 12

The iOS 12 feature set released in 2018 came up with the intent to make devices going as back as 2013 a lot more faster and responsive. 

A lot was happening on the AR front in iOS 12. Users were working around AR compatible hardware for sharing experiences, object detection and image tracking functionalities were added to make apps more dynamic. Pixar was looped in to design a new file format for AR apps known as usdz – which would make it possible to experience AR through any iOS app. 

In addition to these, the now-famous Memoji characters were introduced for the iPhone X users for the first time. In fact, Memoji went on to become the feature that kept the weightage on iOS 12 when comparisons were drawn between iOS 12 and Android P. Group FaceTime was opened up to 32 users at once through audio or video. 

And keeping the focus on Digital Health intact, Apple introduced Screen Time – a feature that would show users the time they are spending on their devices interacting with applications. 

iOS 13

Announced at WWDC 2019, iOS 13 feature set is still on an elongation mode. 

Both users and developers are getting news on probable features that would make their appearance on this Fall, every passing day. 

But two of the biggest news attached with iOS 13 that are very concrete are – A. iPad will get its own OS – iPadOS and B. iTunes store is no longer operative. 

Besides these two notable changes, there are another set of enhancements and new feature additions that iOS 13 is prepared to be launched with. Ones which places them right in front of Android Q in the iOS 13 vs Android Q debate.

Some of the new features that are set to be introduced in iOS 13 include – 

• Dark Mode
• Quick device unlock through Face ID
• Sign In with Apple in users’ account systems
• New Portrait Lighting
• Improved Siri voice
• Look Around functionality in Map

While the real features of iOS 13 would only be revealed when we see its launch in the Fall of 2019, there is one surety – the level of innovativeness will remain intact. Just like the standard that Apple has maintained on an annual basis all throughout the iOS evolution 1-13. 

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